Egypt. Fiscal Documents on Papyrus and Local Configurations of Power in the Late Roman Empire. Research until 2023

Abstract

The papyri from Egypt hand us the opportunity to glimpse at state operations at the local level, how the countryside responded to them, and thus how »empire« looked on the ground. This project traced the delicate balance (in terms of social power) between the »pagarchs« (public authorities responsible for the collection of taxes), aristocratic large landlords and their estates, and cities and villages in the country­side of late antique Egypt. Thus, the project analyzed the administrative and social mechanics of the fiscal regime in one region of the imperial periphery. Exploring the papyrological source material, it offers a unique insight into the dynamic relationship between the Roman Empire and local communities in late antiquity.